


Be Advised

by Pepper (Zalt)



Category: Star Wars: Rebels
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, First Meetings, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-28
Updated: 2020-09-28
Packaged: 2021-03-07 20:47:59
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,086
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26703961
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Zalt/pseuds/Pepper
Summary: In another timeline, the Emperor decided to keep Thrawn at his court instead of sending him to the Academy.
Comments: 6
Kudos: 21
Collections: Once Bitten - Thryce Shy





	Be Advised

It was Arihnda's first visit to Core Square during Ascension Week, and it was not going well.

Being at the center of Imperial high society during the biggest celebration of the year seemed like an impossible dream for a newcomer fresh off the shuttle from the Outer Rim, so she had been utterly delighted when she wrangled an invitation from one of Senator Renking's other aides to join them at the celebrations in their "portable housing". Which turned out to be one of Sentor Renking's vehicles. Not a comfortable place to sleep, but a week short on sleep was a small price to pay to be at the hub of things. So she brought her best clothing and applied make-up to cover the dark circles under her eyes, and set out to climb her first steps on the social ladder of the high and mighty of the Empire.

Not yet knowing which of the many parties in the Core were the most important to see and be seen at, she scheduled her first day to go wherever Senator Renking was going. Her initial hope that he might introduce her to his fellow Senators or other higher-ups turned out to have been overly optimistic, so she settled for circulating at the fringes of the colorful party with the other lower-status guests, trying to make contacts and pick up useful rumors.

_Patience, Arihnda. Persistence and hard work will see you through. Eventually._

The mental pep-talk was needed after a discouraging evening. She had gotten her fellow aide to introduce her to some of his friends at the fringe, and attempted to join in their conversation. But no sooner did she open her mouth than she could see the condescending dismissal in their eyes, and they made no further effort to include her. Her Outer Rim accent and manners still marked her the rube and outsider, the few months she had been on Coruscant just hadn't been enough to polish off the rough edges. And spending most of her time with the working class people in Bash Four had done little to teach her the habits of high society.

So she settled for speaking as little as possible for now, listening and observing and trying her best to learn the proper manners and speech demanded of the occasion. She had a quick mind for that sort of thing, but there was so much to learn, in such short a time. 

Another foray, another rejection. Deciding it was time to rest and regroup, she accepted a glass of sparkling wine from one of the serving droid, and headed for one of the balconies opening off from the curve of the room that faced the outside of the tower. Most were full of people getting what passed for fresh air on Coruscant, clustered and chatting and pointing out the sights of the Core to each other. A smaller balcony was miraculously empty, and she stepped out into the relative silence with a sense of relief. Unceremoniously draining her wine now that she was alone, she turned to see if there was somewhere to put the empty glass down. And realized with a start that she was not alone, after all.

A man was standing in the corner of the semi-circular balcony that was furthest from the door, inconspicuous in the twilight that passed for night on the planet. He was tall and dressed all in black, wearing a short asymmetrical robe and boots that reached to just above the knee, an oddly sober outfit compared to what everyone else was wearing. Long black hair fell down his back, two shorter sections of hair framing a face that was most definitely not human. He had blue skin, the contours of his face and forehead angular and alien, and most remarkably of all — glowing all-red eyes. That were currently studying her with an air of grave interest.

"Oh! You startled me!" She could not quite keep the sound of accusation from her voice, even if he had done nothing more malicious than standing still and quiet while she finished her wine.

"It was not intended. Apologies." His voice was as alien as the rest of him, smooth but oddly accented, and ending in a faint hissing sound.

Arihnda felt oddly heartened as she realized she had finally met someone whose accent was even worse than hers. Not just Outer Rim bad, but like something straight from Wild Space. At least this was someone who could be in no position to look down his nose at her.

"Apology accepted. I am Arihnda Pryce, aide to Senator Renking." She looked expectantly at the stranger.

After a long moment, he introduced himself in return. "I am Mitth'raw'nuruodo. Special advisor to the Emperor."

"Wait... the actual Emperor? You mean you work for him directly?" Arihnda could not believe her luck. After an evening where even lowly aides looked down on her, had she stumbled onto someone attached to the Imperial Palace itself?

"In a manner of speaking." Mitth'raw'nuruodo was silent for a while again, as if assembling his next sentences. He definitely did not seem comfortable speaking Basic. "I have knowledge of use. Most time, I work with maps. Computers. A few times, the Emperor has asks." 

"I believe you mean 'questions'." Arihnda could not help but correct him.

"Questions. Thank you." He said slowly. "I learn, still. Reading. Practice speaking helps. I hoped to find it, here." He gestured with a black-gloved hand, indicating the party inside.

Arihnda could fill in the blanks herself. "But it's not easy to find people who actually want to speak to you. Coruscant is not very forgiving of outsiders, I am afraid."

Mitth'raw'nuruodo smiled wryly at the observation, a surprisingly human expression. And Arihnda felt the last of her doubts disappear. This man would be useful. And more than that, she could be useful to him. Even her fading Outer Rim accent was better than his stilted, unpracticed Basic.

"You will find that is not true of all of us. I would be happy to spend time with you and teach you the finer nuances of our languages, Special Advisor Mitth'raw'nuruodo, and perhaps you can tell me about yourself in return."

The special advisor winced at her words, but before she could figure out how she had unwittingly caused offense, he spoke again.

"This is agreeable to me. With one condition, please." He looked gravely down at her, and as she nodded encouragingly, he said:

"Call me Thrawn."

\--The End--

**Author's Note:**

> I wrote this snippet two years ago as a Friday Fluff for the Thryce Discord. Dug it out of the archives since I can't seem to get any new words written right now. But, still not dead!


End file.
